Return to the M.B.Herald Vol. 36, No. 11 Home Page
Well, it is probably a mistake to have regular votes of confidence on the pastor in the first place, since these votes become an opportunity for complaining. Maybe people voted against the pastor because they were unhappy with the worship style or the colour of the carpet or because the church offended them in some way years earlier. Maybe the vote was handled badly. Maybe churches are too demanding nowadays.
Nevertheless, in many cases it may not matter. It makes little difference whether the trigger was an unfavourable congregational vote, an unfavourable evaluation, a vote of the elders' board, a word of "friendly advice" from the moderator or the pastor's own realization that the people just aren't listening any more. The bottom line is the same: It is time to move on. It is a reality of pastoral work, and of other jobs as well.
What can we do about it? There is no question but that the church handles many of these things badly. We are used to looking at issues in moral terms. When we sin, we suffer the consequences. When we don't sin, we expect God to reward us. Hence the pastor's complaint: "I didn't do anything wrong!"
But what if it isn't a moral issue at all?
Several years ago, some conference leaders were sitting over coffee, discussing a forced resignation. Someone asked what had gone wrong, and various reasons were suggested, but no one could put his finger on a specific cause. Finally, one man suggested, "It may just have been an accumulation of incompetencies."
I found the phrase a useful one. It aptly describes what happens to many pastors, conference leaders and workers, administrators, politicians and others.
As well as gifts and talents and abilities, all of us have weaknesses and blind spots. We have to live with our weaknesses<209>and so do the people around us. People can do this for a while, but eventually the impact of those weaknesses can start to become serious.
Suppose, for instance, a certain pastor is great at providing spiritual care, but is only a mediocre Bible teacher. A congregation hires him because the people need pastoral care to recover from a church split, and they have an accumulated backlog of good Bible teaching from the previous pastor which they haven't even begun to use yet. Time goes by, the church heals, but it also uses up its store of good biblical teaching. New members come in who badly need teaching. In time, that weakness, that neglected area in the pastoral ministry, grows into an urgent need--and a change is needed.
Did the pastor misunderstand God's call? No. God may have called the pastor to the church to do a specific ministry, but perhaps now that ministry is done and God is calling the pastor elsewhere. The pastor hasn't failed. He hasn't done anything wrong. It is just that the church has changed, and he is no longer needed there.
The pastor's weakness might be anything: evangelism, rapport with young people (or old people), administration. Sometimes it may not even be one specific thing, but a whole series of semi-weaknesses. Years ago, I talked to a man who had been elected to a board which was in the process of firing a long-time employee. The new board member worked hard at researching just why the man was being fired. He finally concluded that there was no specific cause; it was just "20 years of sand in the gears" and finally something had to be done.
When a pastor is fired for such an accumulation of incompetencies, both the pastor and the congregation often have great trouble understanding what exactly is happening. The pastor is sure that he has "done nothing wrong" and is being treated unfairly. The congregation (or board) may be unable to clearly explain why they are doing what they are doing, which only increases the pastor's frustration. The congregation may feel guilty and confused, but they can't bring themselves to keep the pastor on either; they feel something has to change.
What should be done abouut this? I don't have any magic solutions, but I have some suggestions.
1. The pastor and congregation must continually pray for discernment. When the situation is not clear, they should ask God to clarify things. Maybe God will show them all why God is calling the pastor elsewhere. Or maybe God will show them that the pastor should stay.
2. There will be times when the pastor must accept with grace something that he just doesn't understand. All of us, sooner or later, will face such a situation. Perhaps God's main concern is how we handle such situations. In confusing times, we must trust in the provision of a loving God who can find other places for us to minister and other ways to supply our daily bread.
3. The need for a change does not negate a pastor's spirituality and gifts. When a congregation decides that it is time for a pastor to leave, they may also conclude that the pastor is no longer suited to ministry. Even worse, the pastor may feel that way. That may not be the case at all. In fact, it may be that the change is God's way of saying that the pastor and his gifts are desperately needed in some other church. Just because a pastor's gifts don't suit one congregation's needs doesn't deny the reality of those gifts or their usefulness in another setting.
4. The pastor and congregation must strive to do everything with love, kindness and gentleness. Even if there must be a parting of the ways, the way that parting is approached can bring pain and distress or healing and affirmation. If a congregation must ask a pastor to leave and they are sure they are following God's leading, then they should not let feelings of guilt stand in the way of expressing God's love to the pastor. Rather than avoid the pastor, they should go out of their way to show him genuine love, kindness and affirmation. In turn, the pastor should not use his sermons to get even, defend himself or show the congregation how wrong they were; rather, he should use every opportunity to continue to build up the congregation in love.
5. The pastor must learn to seek discerning feedback, and the elders' board (or church council) must strive to give it. Many little problems may escape the pastor's notice. He may make an innocent remark which deeply hurts someone's feelings--and never know he has done it. He may need to make some minor changes which will result in big differences. Many minor problems can be easily resolved, which, if left to fester under the surface, will grow into major problems and then suddenly erupt into a disaster.
6. The pastor and congregation should recognize that no one person has all gifts and no person is without weaknesses. An accumulation of incompetencies need not result in a firing. Perhaps other pastoral staff or lay volunteers can be put in place to compensate for the pastor's weaknesses. This requires a willingness on the part of the congregation to work toward a solution other than the simple one of firing the pastor. It may require more work, but the result will be far better in the long run, since it avoids all the hurt and disruption that a pastoral departure can bring. It also requires a willingness on the part of the pastor to admit his own failings. When questions arise, there is a danger that the pastor may become defensive. He may take as a personal affront any suggestion that he make a change or even give up part of his role--and may end up losing it all. If such a pastor had more humility and trust in God and the other church leaders, he might be surprised by how blessed he is with the result. After all, he will be trading in an area where he may be frustrated, in exchange for the opportunity to concentrate on areas of strength. The result could be a tremendous blessing to both himself and the people he is ministering to. Years ago, I knew a man who was a very good pastor but a poor preacher. His congregation flourished because he was wise enough to recognize his weaknesses. He stayed many years, and the congregation was blessed by the preaching of carefully selected guests and lay members of the congregation.
An accumulation of incompetencies is a common reality for all human beings. But it is a reality that can be redeemed by the gifts of the Spirit, the community of believers and the grace of God.
(Note: This editorial was written well over a year ago and has been sitting in my files awaiting an appropriate time for publication.)
Return to the M.B.Herald Vol. 36, No. 11 Home Page